took place in workshops attached to the side of a home. As towns grew into

cities, the demand for manufactured goods increased. Some workshop owners began

hiring helpers to increase production. Relations between the employer and helper

were generally harmonious. They worked side by side, had the same interests and

The factory system that began around the mid 1800's brought great changes. The

employers no longer worked beside their employees. They became executives and

merchants who rarely saw their workers. They were less concerned with their

welfare than with the cost of their labor. Many workers were angry about the

changes brought by the factory system. In the past, they had taken great pride

in their handicraft skills, and now machines did most of the work, and they were

reduced from the status of craft workers to common laborers. The were also

replaced by workers who would accept lower wages. The Industrial Revolution

meant degradation rather than progress.

As the factory system grew, many workers began to form labor unions to protect

their interests. The first union to hold r

This time the workers drove them back by turning fire hoses on them.

more were wounded. News of the killings triggered rioting and fires in the

Labor organizations would fail if they were divided into separate craft unions.

agree on the wages they thought were fair. They pledged to stop working for

number of skilled trades organized national unions to try to improve their

workers in defense industries was a woman.

workers. Foreign competition, which has depressed some United States industries

1952, it had increased to 17 million.

being used as a weapon against unions. The Progressives were unhappy about the

to halt the use of antitrust laws and court injunctions against unions.

order an attack on the strikers. Instead, he ordered General Motors officers to

several union shoemakers in Boston were brought to trial. They were charged

Some common words found in the essay are:
AFL-CIO LABOR, Knights Labor, Anti-trust Act, Progressives AFL, Knights AFL, Debs IWW, GROWTH FACTORY, LAWS Employers, Act January, Railway Strike, knights labor, labor unions, congress passed, craft unions, union membership, organized labor, industrial workers, laws protect, wagner act, passed laws, american federation labor, york oxford university, union represent workers, sherman anti-trust act, federation labor afl,
Approximate Word count = 4105
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page double spaced)